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The Transcontinental Railroad is a free printable Grade 3 to Grade 5 social studies worksheet on how the transcontinental railroad changed where goods were made and sold, aligned to C3 Framework indicator D2.Geo.11.3-5. It prints 6 questions with an answer key on its own sheet of paper, in 25 versions that each ask different questions, so no two students in the class work from the same page. Print it from the browser or download it as a PDF — no account, no email.

Set 19 of 25 · the same problems every time you open this link.

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Set 1 has all 25 in a single PDF. All 25 sets ask different questions.

The Transcontinental Railroad

D2.Geo.11.3-5

NameDate

Read the text and answer the questions, then circle the best answers.

1.Look at the source, then answer the questions.

The Transcontinental Railroad

An information text written for this worksheet. In 1862, during the Civil War, Congress passed a law to build a railroad across the country. The Central Pacific Railroad built east from Sacramento, California. The Union Pacific built west from Omaha, Nebraska. Thousands of Chinese immigrants did most of the Central Pacific's work. They blasted tunnels through the Sierra Nevada and were paid less than white workers. Many Irish immigrants and Civil War veterans laid track for the Union Pacific. The two lines met at Promontory Summit, Utah Territory, on May 10, 1869. A trip from coast to coast had taken months by wagon or ship. By train it took about a week. Ranchers could ship cattle to Chicago, and factories in the East could sell goods in the West. The railroad crossed the hunting lands of Plains nations such as the Lakota and Cheyenne, and brought hunters who killed millions of buffalo.

  1. 1. Where and when did the two lines meet?
  2. 2. How were the Chinese workers treated unfairly?
  3. 3. Why was the railroad a disaster for Plains nations?
  4. 4. What does this text not tell you about the workers?
2.What often happened to a town the railroad passed by?
  • A.It grew faster than every other town
  • B.It shrank as trade moved to towns on the line
  • C.It became the state capital
3.Why did Chicago become a center for meatpacking?
  • A.Cattle were raised in downtown Chicago
  • B.Railroads brought cattle and hogs there from the West
  • C.The ocean carried cattle to Chicago
4.How did refrigerated rail cars change what people ate?
  • A.Fresh meat and fruit could be sold far from where they were produced
  • B.Fruit could only be eaten where it grew
  • C.People stopped eating meat
5.How did the railroad help fruit growers in California?
  • A.They could ship oranges to markets in the East
  • B.They stopped needing water
  • C.They could grow oranges in the snow
6.What did the railroads set up across the country in 1883?
  • A.Standard time zones
  • B.The first telephone lines
  • C.The first highways

LessonPrint · D2.Geo.11.3-5 · Set 19 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — The Transcontinental Railroad

Set 19. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.1. At Promontory Summit, Utah Territory, on May 10, 1869. 2. They were paid less than white workers for dangerous work blasting tunnels. 3. It brought hunters who killed millions of buffalo on their hunting lands. 4. It does not tell you how many workers died building the railroad.
  2. 2.It shrank as trade moved to towns on the line
  3. 3.Railroads brought cattle and hogs there from the West
  4. 4.Fresh meat and fruit could be sold far from where they were produced
  5. 5.They could ship oranges to markets in the East
  6. 6.Standard time zones

Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to D2.Geo.11.3-5 of the C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards.